Governor Kelly picks Kansas Supreme Court justice with past experience on court

Gov. Laura Kelly on Wednesday named an attorney who has represented rural hospitals across the state to the Kansas Supreme Court.

K.J. Wall, 49, will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Chief Justice Lawton Nuss in December 2019.

“K.J. combines the ability to hear cases fairly and impartially with the ability to remember that the law is about people, not simply words on a page,” Kelly said.

Wall was a partner at Forbes Law Group, where he focused on healthcare and rural hospitals. Asked if his background would cause him to abstain from healthcare cases that come to the court, Wall said the question would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Before his time at Forbes, Wall was Deputy General Counsel to the Kansas Supreme Court, where he handled capital cases and special projects. He also worked in private practice as a litigator in Colorado, and as senior counsel at Federated Insurance in Owatonna, Minnesota.

Wall pointed to Nuss as mentor, who demonstrated “the ability to decide every case based on its merits, without consideration or any influence from any outside power.“

“I fully fully intend to do the same.”

Kelly was given three names of potential candidates from the Supreme Court Nominating Commission. She said she chose Wall for his breadth of experience, knowledge and judicial temperament.

This is Kelly’s second Kansas Supreme Court appointment. She named Evelyn Wilson in December 2019.

Justices must stand for retention in the general election after their first year on the court. If voters approve, justices then face a retention vote every six years.

This story was originally published March 11, 2020 at 1:35 PM with the headline "Governor Kelly picks Kansas Supreme Court justice with past experience on court."